In the field of parapsychology, remote viewing is a neutral term for extra-sensory perception, usually performed during experiments in which the percipient tries to describe a distant location or the environs of a distant agent. The term was introduced by Russell Targ and Harold Puthoff in 1974.

The Stargate Project was one of a number of code names used to cover “remote viewing programs”. Others included Sun Streak, Grill Flame, Center Lane by DIA and INSCOM, and SCANATE by CIA, from the 1970s, through to 1995. It was an offshoot of research done at Stanford Research Institute (SRI).

The research program was launched partly because some intelligence officers believed a ‘psi-gap’ had emerged between America and the Soviet Union, for example the reputed abilities of Nina Kulagina. But it was also borne of the soul searching that took place in the American military post-Vietnam, and a willingness that subsequently emerged to ‘think outside the box,’ as exemplified by Jim Channon’s ‘First Earth Battalion’ briefing.

The bulk of supposed remote sensing of places or events is normally performed in the present, but sessions have also been undertaken in the past and future. One of the outcomes from the funding was a set of protocols designed to make clairvoyance a more scientific process, and minimize as much as possible session noise and inaccuracy. The term “remote viewing” emerged as a generalised short hand to describe this more structured approach to clairvoyance.

The project was eventually terminated, according to the official report at the time, because there was insufficient evidence of the utility of the intelligence data produced. However, in the generalized intelligence and defense budget cuts of the period, many projects lost funding, and believers, without evidence, assert that the unit was terminated because of managerial failure. In 1989 new civilian administrators, unfamiliar with CRV protocols, had brought in “witches,” tarot card readers, and channelers, thereby, it is argued, deteriorating the quality of the project’s data. Time magazine stated in 1995 three full-time psychics were still working on a $500,000-a-year budget out of Fort Meade, Maryland, which would soon close up shop.

In 1995 the project was transferred to the CIA and a retrospective evaluation of the results were to be done. The CIA contracted the American Institutes for Research for this evaluation. An analysis conducted by Professor Jessica Utts showed a statistically significant effect, gifted subjects scored 5%-15% above chance, though subject reports included a large amount of irrelevant information. And when reports did seem on target they were vague and general in nature. The noted long time CSICOP psychic debunker Ray Hyman concluded a null result. Based upon their collected findings, the CIA followed the recommendation to terminate the 20 million dollar project. – Wiki

Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stargate_Project
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remote_viewing